The choice of world wide locations available to the
discerning diver is constantly expanding to offer a bewildering
variety to tropical, temperate or even colder water diving with all
the diversity of flora and flora or wrecks one could imagine. To find
a destination which can offer all of these attributes and also
provide the opportunity to investigate a fascinating culture, history
and some stunning scenery would be quite unusual. However, a recent
trip to the Sultanate of Oman has shown me that just such a mixture
is now available.

Oman is situated on the south eastern corner of the
Arabian Peninsula, between Yemen, Saudia Arabia and the United Arab
Emirates, and until the early 1970's was one of the least known Arab
States. This changed dramatically with the discovery of oil and the
accession of a young and progressive Sultan, which combined to
develop the country to its present intriguing mix of modern,
traditional and ancient history. Until only four years ago the
country was closed to tourists and it was only ex-patriot workers and
locals who were able to explore the diving potential offered by the
Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean which meet along Oman's coastline.

This area of the Arabian peninsula is steeped in
history, being the centre of the Frankincense trade in biblical
times, the home of the Queen of Sheba, and having been occupied by
the Portuguese, Persians and British over the centuries. Sinbad the
Sailor is though to have used the ancient port of Sohar as a base for
his voyages, and in recent years the discovery of the ancient city of
Urbar, the "Atlantis of the Sands" by Sir Ranulph Fiennes has
confirmed that the area is of major archaeological significance in
the Middle East.

The geography of the Sultanate is remarkably varied
from the soaring coastal mountains which harbour lush oases and
wadis, to the barren splendour of the "empty quarter" in the
interior, and the surprising tropical vegetation of the south western
coast, which is reminiscent of Sri Lanka or Goa. This variety can be
sampled on a day trip basis or provide an exciting opportunity for
extended safari style or even camel train exploration.

So Oman can provide an attractive mix of activities
to the adventurous traveller, but what is the diving like? Although
there is more than 2,000km of coastline to explore, the diving
facilities are at present centred around the two main centres of
population - Muscat, the capital in the north east and Salalah in the
south west, close to the Yemen border. These locations offer access
to two very different types of diving - tropical coral reefs in the
north and a blend of temperate and tropical in the south. In both
areas the seas are particularly nutrient rich, propagated by the
frequent mixing of temperate and warm currents. Although this can
lead to variable visibility (average 10-15m with spells of 30-40m)
the benefit is a staggering density and variety of fish and
invertebrate life. Whale Sharks and Manta Rays are often sighted
along with several species of whale, and the whole of the coastline
provides favoured nesting sites for several species of turtles.

Muscat

Muscat is the capital of the Sultanate and had a
long maritime history. The old port is of a classic crescent shape
with its entrance dominated by the twin forts of Mirani and Jelali,
which guard the magnificent palace of the Sultan Qaboos. Behind the
port and old town, rises the modern city of Muscat, with its business
centres, hotels and all the amenities of a major centre. The
development has been sympathetic to the traditional architecture and
geography and is also striking as probably the cleanest city I have
ever visited!

There are two commercial diving centres operating
in Muscat - Sunny Days Watersports based at the magnificent Al Bustan
Hotel and the Oman Diving Centre which has its own self-comtained
facilities in a private bay. The latter is also the headquarters of
the Oman Diving Federation and has the patronage of the Sultan. Both
centres are well equipped and offer similar services e.g. training
from novice to instructor (PADI or BSAC), gear hire and sales, and
provision of daily diving.

Diving from both centres is predominantly from
boats, both fast beached-launched hard boats and more sedate dhows
(our dhow dive was unfortunately cancelled at the last moment sue to
the arrest of the dhow's crew who sailed too close to the Sultan's
Palace!!) and there is a wide range of diving within a maximum of one
hour's run of both centres. The coastal scenery is spectacular with
the mountains marching right up to the sea and forming impressive
cliffs. Depths can increase very quickly once you leave the shore and
there is a choice of wall, coral garden or wreck diving.

During my stay we sampled diving sites typical of
the region.

Shark (Fahal) Island

This is a large limestone outcrop about 5km north
west of Muscat and offers interesting reef diving in water depths of
10-40 metres. The seabed consists of rocky galleys and outcrops
encrusted with both hard and soft coral growth. Fish life is profuse
with the chance, as the name suggests, of sighting sharks - sleeping
nurse sharks are quite common.

North Point

This headland is some 8km south east of Muscat and
offers a variety of dive sites. We dived "Topless Bay" (I can't
imagine how it got its name!), which is a shallow coral garden
(maximum 15 metres) in a very sheltered inlet. A very nice second
dive and good for photographers with all sorts of fish life, exotic
plume worms and masses of spiny lobsters!

Bandar Khayran

This site is a little further south east of Muscat
and is accessed through a narrow opening in the cliffs, which opens
out into a stunning fjord formation which turns and runs parallel to
the sea. The best diving sites are at the far end of the "fjord",
where it opens to the sea again, and as we sped toward it we were
joined by a school of 20-25 dolphins, which played in our bow wave
and even permitted a short snorkel with them. Unfortunately they
moved too fast for photography. There are several sites in the area
all offering a mixture of shallow coral gardens and walls on the same
dive site. There are large areas of table corals here and a wide
variety of soft corals, purple whip corals and for the sharp-eyed
"bushes of black coral in only 15 metres of water! Recovery of the
latter is definitely a capital offence!

Salalah

Salalah lies on the Indian Ocean coast some 750
miles south west of Muscat, a flight of about one and a half hours.
The climate is dominated by the Monsoon or Khareef season common in
most Indian Ocean areas. The vegetation is therefore much more lush
and tropical, and the humidity is noticeably higher to new arrivals
from Muscat. The Khareef runs from June to September and creates very
high seas on this exposed coast which curtails diving in all but the
most sheltered bays. The winter months, when it is much cooler and
calmer, are therefore best for a diving expedition.

The town of Salalah is a mixture of ancient and
modern, where tradition is till very much observed, including a
regular Suq for the trading of rifles, many antique, which the local
Omani men still carry. Several kilometres from the town lies the
port, which has a large and active fishing fleet. The Sultan has a
palace here and favours Salalah as a summer retreat. Indeed many
Omanis and resident ex-pats regard Salalah as a holiday retreat,
enabling them to enjoy a tropical climate without leaving Oman.

At present their is only one dive operator in
Salalah - Sunny Days Watersports which is based at the Holiday Inn -
where they offer full training and daily diving excursions. There are
two definite " diving styles" to be sampled - safari style diving and
boat diving, from a dhow.

The safari style diving is reminiscent of the Sinai
as you travel by four-wheel drive vehicle into the desert west of
Salalah. Here you will find a series of sheltered bays which offer
protection to reef building corals, notably table corals and brain
corals. If you visit in the autumn months you will encounter the
unusual sight of giant kelp beds growing alongside coral reefs! This
growth is propagated by the cold currents brought by monsoons in the
summer months, but dies off as the water warms again during the
winter months. These are not the familiar kelp beds you would find in
the UK, but much taller, softer and accessible, and harbour all sorts
of interesting marine life. The coral life is typically Indo-Pacific
and there is a profusion of macro life and a surprising number of
large "snowflake" moray eels.

The boat diving is generally to the eat of Salalah,
and during our stay we used the comfortable dhow owned by Holiday
Inns. The diving here si very different with towering headlands
plunging into the sea, a generally much more exposed coastline. Due
to the heavy seas during the monsoon, reef building corals are very
sparse, but this does not detract from the spectacular underwater
scenery of drop-offs and large boulders and gullies. Soft corals seem
to endure the conditions well and because the coast is open to the
Indian Ocean you will encounter large shoals of fish, many pelagic,
and one or two surprising species such as the giant Cuttlefish.

Our dive sites included.-

Eagle's Nest/Hoons Bay

These are two safari beach dive sites adjacent to
each other either side of a headland. Both offer safe easy entry to
shallow (5-15 metres) coral gardens with the giant kelp growing along
the edge of the reef closer to the shore. A lot of life for the macro
lens here, including Christmas Tree worms, plume worms, gobies,
hawkfish and several species of nudibranch. Large shoals of coral
fish gather under the table corals and watch out for octopus,
scorpion fish and particularly ugly stone fish! This area offers good
easy diving with some lovely beaches to relax on between dives with
your picnic lunch and are particularly popular for a night dive and
beach barbeque.

Gorilla Point and Donkey
Head

These are dhow dive sites approximately 10km east
of Salalah and offer very similar diving under he towering limestone
cliffs. The wall below the cliffs extends to 15-20 metres and then
drops more gently on a seabed dissected by gulleys and strewn with
large boulders. Some hard coral growth is found here but most is soft
with sea whips and small black coral outcrops. Huge shoals of purple
surgeon fish escort you on your dive and you will also encounter
shoaling banner angel fish and Moorish idols (similar to look at, but
different species), a very unusual site. Pelagic sightings included
barracuda, eagle rays and sleeping nurse sharks. The headlands also
seemed to attract large potato cod (grouper) and pairs of giant
cuttlefish.

TRAVEL NOTES

There is a wide range of accommodation available in
Oman, however the diving centres are associated with major hotels, so
it is often better to book a package with diving , as this will offer
the best value and the hotel will also provide transport to and from
dive centres. We stayed with the Holiday Inn in both Muscat and
Salalah, but you could choose the luxurious Al Bustan Palace Hotel
(which has surprisingly good diving packages) and the Oman Diving
Centre will have beach cottages available from this summer.

Flights are with Gulf Air and a standard economy
return is around £400. So it is perhaps better to organise a group to
negotiate package rates or better still to contact one of the tour
operators who plan to offer Oman as a destination.

Oman should not just be seen as an alternative to
the Red Sea as it undoubtedly has much more to offer. If you plan to
sample this alternative destination I would suggest a 10-14 day
itinerary to include diving and land excursions, perhaps add
four-wheel drive or camel safaris to the mountains and interior from
both Muscat and Salalah, so that you derive the most from this
intriguing and attractive arabian land. The Omani people are
extremely friendly, polite and helpful and the fact that tourism is
in its infancy and is not the dominant economy will provide a totally
different experience compared to more traditional destinations.